On one hand a big presentation like this will be a wonder on the resume.

On the other hand, you will spend money and potentially do worse on a final.

IMO, if money is no concern, give the speech, I personally feel it would worth more than a course later in life. If money is tight, or you are not sure, then it's alright to stay home - you already have a flex on you (Highly rated paper), so it's not the end of the world if you won't do it.

Thanks for your opinion - one question, though: how would presenting the paper in person/hybrid differ in terms of the resume? I suppose they are both same as long as the paper is accepted? Do people value having the experience of actually presenting in front of a crowd?

I presume you worked with a faculty member on this paper. If so, you should discuss these questions with them. Most will pay for your conference expenses (travel, accommodation, and daily expenses like food). Their grants usually include funding for conference expenses.

I should add this detail to the original post - this work was done when I was working as a researcher in a startup, so it doesn not have any affiliation with the university's lab or any faculty members. And since I left the startup, I can't get funded by them.

It's a difference "Presented Paper X at Y event" vs "Published highly reviewed paper"

It a) Gives you network opportunities b) Shows you take your stuff seriously c) Shows that you have oral skills, which means you can like use words in a not totally idiotic manner to convey your thoughts, which is always a plus in a technical field.

Obviously a personal opinion -

1.) Go - you’ll regret not going later if you don’t. If possible, study on the plane, even fly in late and fly out early if necessary, but go.

2.) Make a goal of 20 new relevant connections, attend mixers and get contact info. Try to meet a new person maybe every 20 mins and make contact via SM or email or text with each that night.

3.) Sleep less and in uncomfortable places if necessary. I attended a neuroscience conference once by sleeping in a common area of the hotel for 3 hrs in the middle of the night, and glad I did. Also if you make a friend they might let you nap in their room during the day, I’ve done that before too, so can you.

4.) You’re young. You can do this. Have fun and good luck!

1. Presentation type is usually not based on reviewer score, but rather the type of paper you're presenting.

2. 99% of your resume boost through this achievement comes from the fact that you have a first author publication at EMNLP. When you apply to jobs in the future, nobody will care if you actually presented in person or online. It only matters for the connections you make at the conference itself - which are way more important at later stages of your career, not so much as an undergrad.

3. For things like applications to PhD programs your GPA still matters. Take that into consideration if you think your exam performance might suffer as a result of attending EMNLP in person.

4. The in-person EMNLP will certainly be large, but I also suspect a sizable online crowd as well, because Abu Dhabi is far from Europe, China, and NA, and has received a lot of criticism for being an LGBTQ-unfriendly place. While it's easier offline, you certainly can make a lot of connections during online events as well. I especially found poster sessions in GatherTown to be fruitful. If you study the program carefully to attend virtual posters of researchers you want to meet, it's a viable way of networking.

It doubt it makes a difference to anyone reviewing your CV. What matters is that you have a publication at a top venue.

Check if your university has any small funding mechanisms for things like this. (Research active faculty adjacent to the space might be aware of internal small grant programs)

Nice, that's some detailed goals here - thanks!

Yeah I think that's why the conference is consistently showing stats of Abu Dhabi being safer than previous venues in Seattle (NAACL 2022) and Dublin (ACL 2022). My first-author paper was also accepted in NAACL 2022, but I couldn't go in person then, so might as well try it out this time!

Maybe you could contact the instructor and TA regarding the issue of the finals, I guess they will support you somehow.

I'm in a worse situation. I wish to attend but I'll endure a long quarantine upon returning from abroad, which will make my finals a complete mess without any possibility of making it up.

Thanks! Oh, that's sad :( Would love to connect if you are attending!